Recommend a starter kit

[tom s]

Hello all,

 

I'm looking at getting into sea fishing, but I'm not sure of the best way to go about it...

 

I've seen various 'starter kits', such as this one from amazon:

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Fishing-Telescopic...id=UVY0Q0ZFEXWC

 

Which I thought may be a good trial kit to see if I get the taste for it.

 

Problem is - I have no idea if there's a better way to go about this. And would I grow out of a starter kit too quickly if I did enjoy it?

 

Is there any advise that you'd give a beginner about what to buy, or how to start out?

 

I'm not expecting to be catching much straight away, just wanting to enjoy the trying to catch things for now.

 

Thanks.

Tom

[chevin]

Hello all,

 

I'm looking at getting into sea fishing, but I'm not sure of the best way to go about it...

 

I've seen various 'starter kits', such as this one from amazon:

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Fishing-Telescopic...id=UVY0Q0ZFEXWC

 

Which I thought may be a good trial kit to see if I get the taste for it.

 

Problem is - I have no idea if there's a better way to go about this. And would I grow out of a starter kit too quickly if I did enjoy it?

 

Is there any advise that you'd give a beginner about what to buy, or how to start out?

 

I'm not expecting to be catching much straight away, just wanting to enjoy the trying to catch things for now.

 

Thanks.

Tom

 

I think that you might need to give some idea as to where you are based and just what type of fishjing you are going to be doing. As far as the kit you mention, I can only say that a lot of the pleasure you derive from fishing comes from using the tackle you have. If your tackle is giving problems you won't enjoy your fishing very much. I don't think that you need to spend spend a fortune on your first set of gear, but what you will get for 50 quid isn't going to be much good. If you live in a sea side town, there will probably be an angling club there. Try to get in touch with some of the members and tell them what you hope to do and ask for their advice.

 

If you look at my address you will see that I am not in a position to give much advice on your locality but one thing I can tell you is that a cheap telescopic rod is cheap in every way and it will probably drive you crazy.

 

I sincerely hope that you are able to get better advice than I am able to give you on your local situation.

[Brian Carragher]

I would'nt bother with that one if it were me

 

Have a look at some of the "combo" kits from Jarvis Walker that are now available in the UK, thay're a big Australian outfit making a push into the UK market and you will be able to get a half decent outfit for about £40 that do the job for you and let you decide if you wish to continue and get more and better gear or not bother any more

 

They're pretty good value for money and you'll keep it for some time before upgrading

[Spinning_around-the_world]

OK, I would also need a location to give u the best advice, however i would say that the heavier the better at sea, i use that as a general rule!

 

However this doesent mean you should go out and buy a Beachcaster straight away, i did and i found it very good, but i would have prefered a lighter rod would have been better, 10" is what i prefer, unless im at a beach then i opt for a 13ft with 80Gramms casting weight.

 

i have found a rod and reel set for you, i found it in a Pike section but to me it looks like a perfect budget set, and here im prosuming your in the UK.

 

http://www.tackleshop.co.uk/tackleshopcouk...reel__free_line

 

This looks perfect and nice and cheap for a beginner! however i dont know anything about the site! ive used n Okuma/ Ron Thompson combo before and it was fantasctic!

 

But its not the Rod and Reel that catches the fish, if you fish fresh water you no more than ever its about the Rig, or set up of whats in the water.

 

I like to use heavy weights (upto 60G on that set, but carefull with line strength as it could snap on a strong cast) and a nice simple Rig (setup of hooks/weights/swivels/Bait etc etc)

 

How simple??? 1 hook, 1 Weight, 1 three way swivel and a couple of colourful beeds.

 

get a 3 way swivel, and from one of the vertical eyes tie the weight in a short distance from the swivel, about 2 or 3 inches, then use 3 times the length of that to attach your hook, but before you tie your hook slide a few colourful beed up and le the rest on the hook once its tied. Bait it with your selected bait and tie the last which is now you top eye to your mainline and get fishing! !!!!MAKE A FEW OF THESE!! DONT WANNA BE SITTING AROUND TIEING KNOTS ALL OVER AGAIN IF YOU GET A SNAG AND LOSE YOUR GEAR ON A ROCK!

 

Do some research on your local area and have fun!

 

Here is an example of my rig, notice the beads and the length of the hook from the weight, you cant see the swivel however!

[tom s]

First off, thanks for the advice so far. The kits suggested look like much they're much better quality for a similar price, which is what I'm after.

 

Location wise, I'm in Canterbury in the UK, so I'd be going to various places in South/East Kent, trying out the various beachs and piers and seeing what I enjoy (and catch). Does this mainly alter the line/bait or does the location effect the rod as well? ( - sorry, I'm still learning).

 

Thanks again,

Tom

[tom s]

Another one that I've stumbled across is:

http://www.abfishingtackle.com/acatalog/se...tarter-kit.html

 

It might just be my ignorance, or perhaps the 'star buy sticker' but it looked like you get a fair bit of kit for the price..

 

comments welcome?

Would I still be better off with the pike rod or similar? It's one of the more difficult products to compare as you don't seem to get many 'stats' with them.

[Spinning_around-the_world]

Another one that I've stumbled across is:

http://www.abfishingtackle.com/acatalog/se...tarter-kit.html

 

It might just be my ignorance, or perhaps the 'star buy sticker' but it looked like you get a fair bit of kit for the price..

 

comments welcome?

Would I still be better off with the pike rod or similar? It's one of the more difficult products to compare as you don't seem to get many 'stats' with them.

 

Yeah it looks like you get alot with it, the rod stand is interesting, i need a new one lol! but i say "looks" ok ive never used any of that named equipment except for the Shakespeare, and tho they build good rods but i think there is better out there.

 

Budget is what your getting there, certainly better then your first choice! it does come with a box and lots of hooks, beads etc etc, but i prefer to choose my own in my local store, this way the rig is all created by me, kinda makes me more proud when i catch a fish.

 

My biggest concern here would be Reliability! not with the 2 piece Shakespeare but with everything else im not sure.

 

Also they claim it has a HUGE casting weight on it, for that price at least! 120 to 240 gramms 4-8OZ wow! max i use is 120 and thats rare, 80 gramm gripper usually does me from the beachn if not i use about a plain 60 in harbours and off piers, the weight in the last picture i put up was only 40! so all that aside, its a Beachcaster, look at the Hellbender here, http://www.anglingcentre.net/acatalog/s_abeach.html notice the price?? so imagine your getting a rod claimed the same quality as that with a reel, stand, box, bits and bobs and 18LB line, sounds like an awsome deal, but that rod would never match up the Hellbender.

 

Its gunna be nice heavy gear either way, and better from a beach than pike rods, but if you wanna learn to cast?? start smaller!

 

Im not gunna say get it or dont, simply as its your decision to make, but i must say ive looked around there website and wasnt impressed.

 

And as for smaller rods at sea, i also use an 8ft, 8-24 gramm, casting Berkley series 1 to catch 3-4+ Lb Cod all the time, Simply spinning in deep water off rocks and harbour edges. (Check my profile for a pic of a 2LB catch)

 

Berkely Series 1 skeletor with an Okuma EPX30 Pro Match:

Edited August 4, 2009 by Spinning_around-the_world

[tom s]

Its gunna be nice heavy gear either way, and better from a beach than pike rods, but if you wanna learn to cast?? start smaller!

 

Ahh, I see what you mean, better to learn with more managable gear and work up to the heavy-weight kit. Makes sense.

I'd probably start from local piers or harbours, I've checked some fees and they're very reasonable. I'm trying to arrange a trip out with a friend-of-a-friend that has a lot of kit to get a bit of a hands on too.

 

I think I'll look around for smaller rods, and then look for a batch of beads, hooks and things to trial and error with and start building my own rigs. I'd like to do it all from scratch from the local shop but I'd have no idea where to start when looking around. So I could do with a selection of bits and pieces to get me started. I guess that's another things that I can learn as much about as possible if I can get out fishing soon.

 

Thanks again, you've been a massive help so far, I'd be out there struggling with the amazon kit if it wasn't for you!

Tom